The US Under Secretary of State, John Bolton, said after his talks in Moscow on Friday that the State Department did not see any similarity in the Iraqi and Georgian issues.

He said there could be no quid pro quo, as Washington's position was very strong: Iraq has been for years in contempt of the UN Security Council resolutions.

But Russia brought up the same charge against Georgia, maintaining that Tbilisi ignores the UN Security Council resolutions on the fight against international terrorism.

If the US can hit whoever it suspects of harbouring terrorists, the Russian politicians say, why can't we do the same where we see fit.

This logic is worrying some observers.

They warn the international coalition against terror may crumble, if countries pursue their own selfish agendas, be it Iraq or Georgia.

This has more to do with cheap oil and spheres of influence, they say, than international security.

They urge Russia and America to stop wrangling and find a common ground.

Tug-of-war

Mr Boltin's words at the news conference in Moscow might have been music to their ears.

Asked if Washington would go it alone if Russia refused to support it on Iraq, he reportedly said "no".

For his part, Sergei Prikhodko, Deputy Chief of Staff in President Putin's administration, said "Russia and the United States have a common goal regarding the Iraqi issue - to secure guarantees that Iraq does not have weapons of mass destruction and will not have them in the future."

Does this mean that both side are close to an agreement?

Russian observers are not overly optimistic.

The US has just imposed penalties on three Russian companies that are accused by Washington of selling sensitive military technologies to "rogue states".